When Bicycling reviewed Felt’s F1 SL in May, the bike had a great ride but didn’t overwhelm us with stiffness like some top-tier performance-oriented models do. Felt looks to change that for 2011 with a completely new F1 platform that’s not just stiffer than the current model, but lighter as well.

New carbon molding techniques in the form of internal polyurethane bladder pieces clean up the insides of the carbon structures – especially at places like the headtube, bottom bracket and seat tube joint. The exact shape eliminates irregularities and reduces the need for fillers, both of which add weight and deaden the ride. The new frame is what Felt calls a “dynamic monocoque” consisting of joined carbon structures and tubes. At just 800 grams for a 56cm frame, that’s 100 grams lighter than the current F1 SL and a whopping 400 grams lighter than the F1 Sprint model. Plus, it’s stiffer than both models. Unfortunately the price has gone up significantly in the process (up 50 percent for the frameset) but Felt didn’t cut corners on the new frame. For example, the rear dropouts are carbon monocoque and the outer layer of carbon is 1K weave that’s a third the weight and eight times the price of traditionally used 3K. The new fork is now tapered and weighs a scant 300 grams. Internal wire routing for Shimano’s Di2 electronic group keeps everything clean and innovative mechanical cable guides plug into the existing Di2 holes for clean integration. The bottom bracket is BB30 with adaptors available for other standards.

Trickle-down technology will be found in other F1 models like the SRAM Red equipped F3 with a 900-gram frame, 320-gram fork, equal stiffness and a reasonable price of just $5,000. The same frame can be found in models as inexpensive as $2,000.

The new Felt DA

The other Felt road model to get a ground up redesign is its TT/Tri inspired DA. It too takes advantage of Felt’s new molding techniques. Its Bayonet 3 fork gets even narrower and now uses its own bearing that’s smaller than 1 inch in diameter. Even though it’s 60 grams lighter, the third generation fork is just as stiff as the Bayonet 2 found on the current model. The widest point of the front end is now just 34mm across. A small and easy to service V brake is tucked under the chainstays. Felt jokingly calls its bike “wind tunnel rejected,” but says that instead of just taking it to the tunnel and saying it's tested they actually rejected many different iterations before settling on the current design. Their efforts yielded a bike that’s 15 percent stiffer and faster than the current model. It’ll be available as a complete bike with Shimano Di2 costing $12,500 and as a frameset consisting of a frame, fork, seatpost, brake and stem with nine different length extensions. Pricing for the frameset is not yet available.

Look for ride impressions and full reviews here at Bicycling.com and in the pages of Bicycling magazine.